


Popliteus

by phenomenology



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Established Relationship, Hospitals, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, M/M, daisuga if you squint - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-16
Packaged: 2019-08-24 14:13:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16641735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phenomenology/pseuds/phenomenology
Summary: I wrote this as a dumb study method for popliteal tendonitis and it kind of...became this dumb short story.-or-Hinata's an idiot (as usual) and gets himself hurt during a match. Kageyama is an idiot in love (as usual), and worries.





	Popliteus

**Author's Note:**

> [throws this down with a tired noise] here

“Daichi-san, nice serve!” Hinata called over the roaring cheer surrounding them. The noise was coming from all sides, firing adrenaline through Hinata’s veins as his bright eyes tracked the volleyball as it sailed over the net towards Shiratorizawa’s team. Hyper aware of the single dripping bead of sweat that was trailing slowly down his left cheek, Hinata shifted his weight to his right. Sucking in a soft, startled breath, Hinata’s eyes stung viscerally as pain flared to life on the outside of his knee and travelled like a sear down to the back of his leg. Feeling almost like his leg was about to buckle, Hinata ground his teeth together and pushed his weight fully to the side, ignoring the flare of pain as he clumsily saved the spiked ball from hitting their court.

“Nice, Hinata!” Tanaka’s voice could be heard just barely to Hinata’s far right over the din of the audience. Watching for a few rapid heartbeats as Kageyama tossed to Asahi and they managed to score a point, Hinata tried to keep the discomfort off his face as the pain seemed to settle down.

Hobbling as discretely as possible to their brief huddle, Hinata managed to beam up at Asahi as they celebrated their point. Kageyama’s dark grey eyes were trained on Hinata for a moment, and the shorter hoped that his pain had not been discovered. 

Hinata was very much aware that injuries were something that should be taken seriously, especially if he wanted to be able to keep playing in the future. But this was nothing. The pain had been a steadily growing twinge for almost a week now, most prominent when Hinata was biking to and from school over the mountain or whenever he leapt into the air to hit a toss.

But he was fine. It wasn’t hindering his ability to play, so it couldn’t be that bad. He would probably tell Coach Ukai about it after this set, but for now, they really needed to get a quick in the bag so they could get ahead.

The huddle scattered, and Hinata briefly bent to adjust his kneepads before scampering off to his position in the rotation.

After their serve, the volleyball came soaring towards their side of the court, Tanaka managing to get it into the air nicely as it floated towards Kageyama’s waiting, outstretched hands. Hinata knew the look in his partner’s eyes, knew that his mind was calculating risks, trying to read the opponent to figure out which spiker would be best to get another point on the board.

Desperate to boast his team’s morale, to slam down a quick that would fire his teammates up, Hinata thrust his hand into the air and started jogging forward towards the net.

“Kageyama!” Hinata called, aware of the brief glance shot his way. This wasn’t their usual method of signaling, but Hinata was desperate, and Kageyama seemed to understand that.

There were three blockers in front of Hinata, and he had to repress the smirk he felt crawling up his lips as he prepared to sprint to the other end of the court. Landing on his right foot, ready to bolt, Hinata had to clamp down on a yell as the shear forces collided with unbearable friction in his knee and made his eyes water. Grunting as he stumbled into a sprint, Hinata pretended not to notice the startled looks on his teammates faces as he desperately got himself ahead of the blockers and to the other side of the court.

Stopping on a dime, Hinata launched into the air, the mesh of the net sailing past his eyes as pain flared violently throughout the entire process of his knee moving during the jump.

If he was honest with himself, Hinata was surprised he even got off the ground, considering his right leg felt like it was going to give out on him the second he bent his leg to jump.

But he was in the air, and Kageyama had gotten the ball to his hand, just as Hinata swung with all of his faith in his setter. The weight of the volleyball was snug in Hinata’s palm, the familiar sting of the leather being forced to change direction at high velocity a reassuring comfort on the follow through of Hinata’s movements. The resounding smack of the leather colliding with the gymnasium floor on Shiratorizawa’s side and the shrill call of the referee’s whistle came only seconds before the sickening thud of Hinata’s entire bodyweight collapsing against the faux wood.

Karasuno’s team halted mid-celebration, all eyes zoning in on Hinata’s crumpled form. They seemed frozen, unsure, as if waiting for their little ball of energy to bounce up like he always did, sporting some kind of bruise but beaming all the same. But all that happened was Hinata seeming to stir to life listlessly, before he curled into a tighter ball with a very quiet groan that was lost under the noise of the crowd looking on from the stands.

“H-Hinata!” Nishinoya seemed to shake off the surprise first, his voice calling through the confused racket of cheering for the point scored and the concerned murmurs for the fallen player.

Sliding over to Hinata’s side with the use of his kneepads, Nishinoya’s hands gripped the younger’s shoulders and rolled him gently back a little to get a better look at Hinata’s face. Hinata’s spine bumped gently against Nishinoya’s knee as the libero supported the younger’s weight.

“Noya-senpai…” Hinata grit out, tears leaking from his scrunched eyes, pain glistening in his irises. “It hurts.”

“What does?” Daichi’s concerned voice sounded at Nishinoya’s shoulder the same moment the captain appeared there. Glancing over the boy, Daichi found Hinata’s hands clutching white-knuckled at his right knee.

“Is it your knee, Hinata?” A painful, short nod answered him. “What happened?”

“I-I don’t know…” Hinata sobbed, curling a little further into himself. The pain was almost blinding, and Hinata was pretty sure he blacked out for a moment or two after landing with all of his weight on his right leg after that spike.

“It’s the b-back of my k-knee,” Hinata managed to stutter out. There was a short commotion before more people were suddenly crowded around Hinata. The pain was so overwhelming that Hinata could only catch bits and pieces of sensory details. He was aware of Tanaka’s voice speaking urgently just above his head with Nishinoya’s, and Daichi’s large hand was warm and gentle as it supported Hinata’s calf to keep his injured leg from the floor. Sugawara’s fretful fingers were suddenly pushing Hinata’s sweaty fringe away from his forehead so that the younger could look up and see the way his senpai’s worry creased the delicate skin around Sugawara’s eyes, his mole vanishing into one of the creases.

Things were starting to come back into focus – and Hinata was suddenly very much aware of the mostly hushed stadium now – as Kageyama knelt carefully next to Hinata. His eyes flickered over where Hinata was still clutching at his knee, before those slender piano fingers were very carefully prying Hinata’s fingers away.

A whimper fell from Hinata’s lips at the movement, pain twanging slightly in his muscles as the other members protested and tried to get Kageyama to stop. But the setter ignored them and glanced Hinata’s way.

“Sorry,” Kageyama’s voice was quieter than Hinata had ever heard it. “Just bear with it for a moment, okay?”

Hinata nodded and his now free hand found it’s way into one of Sugawara’s, clinging tightly with apprehension.

Kageyama quickly, and as carefully as he could, tugged the snug kneepad away from Hinata’s injury. Hinata’s eyes watered as his ears started to ring. He tightened his grip on Sugawara’s hand and missed the gasps and quiet exclamations from his teammates around him.

Hinata’s knee was an angry shade of red, the joint swollen and warm to the touch. Ukai, who had been hovering behind Kageyama’s shoulder apparently, cursed quietly under his breath and waved to the referee nearby to get the medical team to come over.

“Why didn’t you say anything, Hinata?” Daichi scolded lightly, his tone more worried than angry. 

“I-I didn’t know it was that bad,” Hinata mumbled, his voice choked with pain. “It hurt a l-little but I didn’t know—” 

Nishinoya shushed Hinata gently and reassured him that he would be okay as two medical staff members rushed over. Hinata could hear Daichi, Asahi, and Ukai behind him, talking quietly amongst themselves. The medical staff gently asked the team members hovering around to back up so they could work. Hinata felt Nishinoya and Tanaka’s hands retreating to be replaced with the cold latex of the medical team’s gloved hands.

Panicking as Sugawara’s hands started to retreat from Hinata’s hair, his hand shot out and caught hold of Kageyama’s wrist, who was still knelt near Hinata’s head despite the medical team’s request.

“D-Don’t go,” Hinata managed, teeth clenching and eyes screwing shut at the first careful prod to his inflamed knee. “Please…I’m scared.”

“Dumbass,” Kageyama mumbled, his calloused hand resting over Hinata’s as he settled more comfortably on the floor by Hinata’s head. “I’m not going anywhere.”

* * *

“This is something called popliteal tendonitis. It can be common in athletes due to overuse in certain aspects of utilizing the knee musculature.” A calm, stern looking doctor delivered the news to Ukai and Hinata at the hospital almost three hours later. The medical team had taken Hinata off the court for an examination before determining that he needed to have x-rays and see a doctor for a more thorough diagnosis. Ukai hadn’t been able to come right away, needing to stay with the rest of the team to finish the game, so Takeda had come along. Now, Takeda was outside in the waiting area with the rest of the team while Ukai stood by Hinata’s hospital bed. 

“Is it serious? Will I still be able to play? The Spring Tournament…I can’t let my team down.” Hinata was frantic, but he tried to stay polite with the woman standing at the end of his bed. He was aware of his coach’s gaze resting heavily on Hinata’s knee, but the tiny athlete couldn’t look away from the doctor’s face.

“Hinata—” the doctor paused to look down at Hinata’s chart in her hand. “Shouyo, I’m not sure when your tournament is, so I can’t give you an answer as to if you’ll be allowed to play. However, I can tell you that this injury isn’t something that should keep you from ever playing again. If you go to therapy and do as you’re told – and _rest_ – then I see no reason for you to not return to your team.”

“How can we make sure that something like this doesn’t happen again?” Ukai interjected into the conversation, finally dragging his gaze away from Hinata and over to the doctor. “And what should we look out for in Hinata and my other players?”

“Most commonly, something like this happens because of overuse to the muscles as I said before. We usually see this in runners or bikers, but if your players are running around a lot without properly resting, popliteal tendonitis can flare up. Also, if any of them have had previous knee injuries or have weakness around their knees, this type of tendonitis can become common. Usually if athletes start complaining about pain around the sides or backs of their knees, or if the joint looks swollen, that’s a good indication that something is wrong. On top of that, if their knees feel constantly weak or in pain with any type of bending or straightening movement, have them look into it.”

Ukai, nodding with rapt attention, thanked the doctor as she excused herself from the room to write up a script for Hinata’s therapy. Once the door was shut behind her, Ukai turned to Hinata with a stern look on his face. Shrinking into the pillow at his back, Hinata ducked his gaze and fiddled quietly with the blanket across his lap.

“Kid,” Ukai eventually heaved out on a sigh. “This is why I'm always telling you and that hard head Kageyama to rest. I know you’re passionate and you want to keep playing, but if you can’t even stand up, you can’t stand on the court.”

At Hinata’s panicked look, Ukai held up his hands in a placating gesture and gave Hinata a tiny smile. “I have no doubt you’re going to be fine, but you need to listen to the doctors and to me from now on. We aren’t going to leave you behind. You’re too important for us to be able to do that." 

When Ukai realized that Hinata looked like he was about to simultaneously burst into tears and combust from vibrating joy, he gave a sheepish grin and gestured to the door.

“I’ll go fetch the others before one of them jumps a doctor to come see you. They were scary during the last part of the game after you left. You really motivated them to keep fighting.”

As Ukai slipped out of the room, Hinata brought a hand to his chest and clutched at the thin hospital gown there. _He had inspired his team to keep fighting._ It was only once the door softly clicked shut that Hinata realized Ukai hadn’t said anything about the outcome of the match. A cold feeling of dread sunk into Hinata’s stomach, making him feel sick and numb all at once. Chewing anxiously at his lip, Hinata practically cracked his neck with how quickly it snapped up at the sound of the door opening.

Next thing he knew, Kageyama was at his side, Sugawara and Daichi were hovering on the other side of his bed, and Ennoshita was holding Tanaka and Nishinoya back from leaping into bed with Hinata. The rest of the team filtered in slowly, gathering around Hinata’s bed and giving him smiles of relief and asking how he felt. Once Hinata had reassured them all that he was okay, he managed to blurt out the question burning in his chest.

“Did we win?”

No one answered him immediately, which caused that cold feeling in Hinata’s stomach to sink and solidify. But then Nishinoya broke into a broad grin and gave the younger a firm nod.

“We crushed them.”

The relief that swept through Hinata felt like a high and he couldn’t stop the stupid grin that worked its way onto his face or the bubbly giggles that tumbled from his lips. He felt like crying, but managed to hold back the tears as he beamed brightly around at his teammates. Tanaka and Nishinoya had launched into a dramatic reenactment of the last few plays of the match, no doubt hyperbolizing their own roles in their team’s victory. But Hinata didn’t mind, nodding along enthusiastically to everything his senpais said. Kageyama stayed next to Hinata the whole time, his hand wrapped loosely around Hinata’s wrist his eyes always wandering back to examine Hinata’s face as the smaller laughed at his elder teammates.

Eventually, Daichi and Sugawara managed to corral everyone together and usher them from the hospital room. Sugawara paused to ruffle the younger’s hair and give him a firm hug. Daichi placed a firm hand on Hinata’s shoulder and told him to rest and follow the doctor’s orders. Hinata’s parents were out of town for a few days to visit family a few towns over and had taken Natsu with them. Ukai had made sure that Hinata could spend the night in the hospital to rest until Hinata’s parents could pick him up tomorrow.

Kageyama, through all of this, remained right at Hinata’s side. He and Daichi exchanged looks before the captain left them alone in the now quiet hospital room.

“Aren’t you going to go home too, Kageyama?” Hinata truthfully didn’t want to be left alone, but he also didn’t want to make anyone from his team feel obligated to stay with him overnight.

Kageyama was staring down at Hinata’s wrist where his hand was wrapped around Hinata’s joint. He didn’t answer for a few heartbeats, long enough for Hinata to wonder if the other had even heard him.

“I was so scared today when you didn’t get back up,” Kageyama’s voice was so quiet, Hinata wasn’t sure if he would have heard him earlier. But now, in the near silence surrounding them, he heard Kageyama crystal clear.

“I’m sorry,” Hinata answered in a voice just as soft. “I didn’t mean to scare everyone. I didn’t even know that it had gotten this bad. I just wanted to keep playing.”

Shaking his head, Kageyama looked up at Hinata finally and stared at him intently. “I know that, and I know I probably would have done the same…but we’re all so used to you popping right back up after tumbling over that seeing you just _lying_ there was beyond terrifying.”

Looking down at his hands, Hinata tugged his wrist free of Kageyama’s hold, only to then flip his hand around to intertwine their fingers. Kageyama looked up at the motion, fingers tightening slightly around Hinata’s hand. He seemed to deflate, the tension bleeding from his muscles with the reassuring gesture. Hinata chuckled softly and tugged Kageyama’s hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to the other’s knuckles.

“I’m sorry I scared you, but I’ll be okay. In the meantime, when should we tell the others about us? They’ll probably catch on sooner or later.” Hinata started playing with Kageyama’s fingers, intrigued as always with the difference in length between their digits.

“I feel like Daichi-san already knows,” Kageyama murmured. “He kept asking me if I was okay after they took you off the court, and he didn’t even question me staying the night with you.”

“Well, if he does know,” Hinata mused. “That probably means that Suga-san knows too. It definitely makes things easier for us.”

“So, tell them tomorrow?”


End file.
